A sudden wave of nausea crashed into her.
A violent pain twisted through her stomach, tightening until it forced the air from her lungs and tore a rough Ggh! from her throat.
Her chest hitched, breath turning shallow and uneven as heat surged upward, suffocating and relentless.
She lurched forward, stumbling out of bed and barely catching herself as her balance faltered.
Her legs trembled beneath her, weak and unreliable, each step dragging as though her body lagged behind her will.
Gritting her teeth, she forced herself toward the bathroom, her breaths coming in short, strained bursts.
She made it just in time.
Dropping to her knees in front of the toilet, she retched violently.
Ghk. Blegh!
The harsh sounds echoed in the small space as her body convulsed, emptying what little remained in her stomach.
The force strained her muscles, leaving her shoulders trembling until only dry, painful heaves remained.
Her breathing turned ragged, a broken rhythm of Haah, Haah, Haah, filling the silence as she struggled to recover, her lungs burning with each uneven breath.
The sensation was unfamiliar.
Her body had endured much and adapted to survive what had been done to it, yet this felt different.
It was stronger, more disruptive, and wrong in a way she could not explain.
Her hand gripped the edge of the toilet tightly, her knuckles whitening as her fingers pressed into the cold porcelain.
Her head hung low as she tried to think through the lingering haze.
A faint Hah... Hh... slipped from her throat, almost forming into a laugh before it faltered and died.
Her shoulders twitched once, then stilled.
Her fingers tightened again, grounding herself as she drew in a slow breath and released it.
"No," she whispered, steadier now.
Her breathing gradually evened, and her thoughts began to settle, fragile but still her own.
She was not far gone, not yet, and she clung to that.
As the moment passed, she clung to what remained of herself, but a question formed, heavy and persistent.
Why now?
She had endured everything they had done to her.
Her body had adapted, had learned how to survive it, yet this was something else entirely.
She forced herself to calm, closing her eyes briefly as she steadied her breathing.
Her trembling fingers moved to her wrist, pressing lightly as she searched for her pulse.
At first, it was faint and difficult to find, slipping beneath her touch as though it were trying to hide from her awareness.
She concentrated harder, shutting out everything else as she focused on the rhythm beneath her skin.
As her breathing gradually steadied, she listened, and then she felt that something was wrong.
Her eyes opened quickly, alarm flickering across her expression.
She adjusted her fingers and checked again, more carefully this time, searching for clarity.
The rhythm was not steady.
It was not normal.
What... How...?
Something about it was different, subtle yet undeniable, and it sent a cold unease through her chest.
Her stomach tightened as a realization began to form, slow and heavy.
She checked again, slower this time, deliberate, making certain she was not imagining it.
There was no mistake.
No… this is impossible. I would know. I should know. But there is nothing. Not a single memory.
Her breath caught sharply in her throat as understanding settled over her.
Her hand slowly lifted from her wrist and hovered over her stomach, her fingers trembling.
She was pregnant.
She hesitated, as though touching it would make everything real in a way she was not ready to face.
"I…" Her voice faltered. "How…?" she whispered weakly, her voice dry and barely audible.
Her mind scrambled desperately, trying to piece together something from before everything went wrong.
The car, the fall, the moment before everything broke apart.
Nothing came back clearly, only fragments of darkness, pain, and the vague sensation of hands.
Her breathing became uneven again as panic began to rise in her chest.
SMACK.
Her palm struck the side of her head, the sharp sound cracking through the confined space.
"Remember..." she muttered, her voice shaking with frustration.
Why isn't it working?
SMACK.
She hit herself again, harder this time, the impact snapping through the air as if force alone could break through whatever blocked her memories.
"Remember!" she cried, forcing her mind under her control.
I've got nothing...
Her vision shook with each impact, but her thoughts only scattered further instead of becoming clearer.
Her hand dropped slowly, her thumb brushing over something on her finger.
The movement stilled as her attention shifted.
A faint glint reflected under the dim light.
What's this?
A ring.
It shimmered with a faint, translucent glow, vibrating against her finger as if trying to signal her.
Each time she tried to remember what happened before the accident, a sharp, unrelenting burn flared.
She stared at it, confusion tightening her expression, as if trying to grasp something that should already make sense.
The ring had always felt natural on her finger, so much so that she had never truly noticed it until now.
The realization formed slowly in her mind.
No… that's not right. How could I forget something this important?
She was married.
The thought felt distant and disconnected, as though it belonged to someone else.
It explained something, yet not nearly enough to make sense of everything.
If anything, it made the situation worse.
To who? When? Why can't I remember any of it?!
Her breathing grew uneven as panic surged again, her chest tightening until it hurt to breathe.
Her head began to pound, throb... throb... throb..., a relentless rhythm built behind her eyes until the pressure became overwhelming.
Everything hit at once.
Fear twisted into anger as her shaking hands curled into fists.
This doesn't make sense! None of this makes sense!
BANG.
She slammed both hands against the toilet tank.
The porcelain cracked under the force, a sharp fracture splintering across its surface.
Who am I supposed to be if I don't even know this?!
BANG.
She struck it again, harder.
This time, a piece gave way with a brittle crack, shards chipping loose and clattering onto the floor.
Why does it feel like someone is toying with me?
THUD.
Her foot lashed out, kicking the wall.
The impact dented the paneling, a dull indentation forming as dust shook loose.
My life… my memories… how could they be taken from me?
CLANG.
She shoved herself upright and drove her fist into the sink.
The metal frame rattled violently, pipes groaning beneath the sudden force.
AAAHHH!
CRASH.
Her arm swung toward the mirror.
Glass shattered on impact, splintering outward in jagged lines before breaking apart completely.
Fragments rained down into the sink and across the floor, scattering in sharp, glittering pieces.
Her reflection fractured with it, breaking into countless distorted versions of herself before disappearing entirely.
"Why is this happening?" she shouted, her voice raw and breaking under the weight of everything she could not understand.
She kept hitting and pushing, her movements growing more erratic as the pressure inside her built.
Whoever is responsible for this will answer for it. One day, I will come to collect.
BANG. CRASH. THUD.
The bathroom filled with the sounds of destruction, impacts overlapping as porcelain cracked, metal groaned, and glass shattered until the noise became overwhelming, drowning out everything else.
Then it stopped.
Not gradually, but all at once, as though something inside her had simply given out.
Her arms fell to her sides, heavy and lifeless, while her breathing remained harsh and uneven.
She stood there for a moment, swaying slightly as she struggled to keep her balance.
The bathroom around her was left in ruin.
The mirror hung in broken remnants, the sink rattled loosely from its fittings, and the toilet bore fresh fractures spidering across its surface.
Shards of glass littered the floor, catching what little light remained.
She walked out quietly, the sudden calm unnatural after the chaos.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, she forced her breathing to slow, inhaling deeply and exhaling in a controlled rhythm.
Gradually, her focus returned.
There was something important she needed to do.
Even if I don't understand this… I can still protect it.
Her hands lifted slowly, trembling as they hovered over her body.
Then her fingers pressed carefully against specific points along her chest and lower abdomen, each movement deliberate and precise.
Her breathing began to match the rhythm of her actions as she concentrated despite her exhaustion.
Something subtle shifted within her body, something she could not see but could feel.
She continued, repeating the motions with quiet determination, forcing her body to respond.
Sweat formed along her forehead as the strain built, her jaw tightening as she used what little strength she had left.
She was forcing it to hide.
Stay safe... Stay hidden...
Her movements slowed as her strength began to fade.
Finally, her fingers rested gently over her lower abdomen, holding there for a moment as though sealing something in place.
A quiet stillness followed.
It was now protected and hidden.
Her hands fell back to her sides as her body swayed more noticeably.
The last of her strength drained away, leaving her limbs heavy and unresponsive, as though they no longer belonged to her.
Her vision darkened at the edges as shadows slowly closed in.
Her breathing became shallow and uneven, each inhale weaker than the last.
A faint ringing began to build in her ears, a thin eeeeee... rising steadily as everything else began to fade.
She tried to remain upright, but her body no longer responded the way she needed it to.
Her strength was gone.
She collapsed onto the bed, her body hitting the mattress with a dull, heavy thud.
Her limbs went slack, unresponsive, as shallow, uneven breaths rose from her chest.
Her fingers twitched once, then stilled.
Her face softened with exhaustion, though tension still lingered beneath.
Darkness crept in, swallowing her fading awareness.
Just before everything went black, a faint thought lingered.
Something inside her had not stopped.
Then she lost consciousness once more.